Obama On Drug Laws: 'No Doubt Our Criminal Justice System Is Skewed'

"There is no doubt that our criminal justice system generally is so heavily skewed towards cracking down on non-violent drug offenders," stated fomer President Barack Obama in a 2015 interview with VICE founder Shane Smith. This candid discussion, tackling a myriad of pressing issues from foreign policy to global warming, offered an opportunity to probe the nation's leader on the contentious topic of marijuana legalization. 8 years later, his views make as much sense as they did back then.

In the conversation, President Obama separated the notion of the decriminalization of marijuana from endorsing its use, providing a nuanced perspective on this divisive matter. He admitted the weight of the issue, acknowledging the negative impact of the justice system's approach on communities, especially those of color. The stringent crackdown on non-violent drug offenders has had an unfortunate ripple effect, creating unemployable individuals with felony records and contributing to disproportionate prison sentences.

"It costs a huge amount of money to states, and a lot of states are starting to figure that out," the President added, pointing to the fiscal burden of stringent drug laws.

Amid this bleak scenario, however, President Obama identified a promising trend. He noted, "you're starting to see not just liberal Democrats, but also some very conservative Republicans recognize this doesn't make sense," pointing out that the libertarian wing of the Republican Party was beginning to see the financial impact and the high cost of incarceration.

With a shift in attitudes and the costly repercussions of incarceration gaining visibility, he suggested that progress might be possible in terms of decriminalization. "At a certain point, if enough states end up decriminalizing, then Congress may then reschedule marijuana."

However, the President was careful to underscore that marijuana decriminalization or legalization is not a panacea. Invoking a broader conversation about substance abuse, he asked, "Do you feel the same way about meth? Do we feel the same way about coke? How about crack? How about heroin?"

He voiced valid concerns about the effects of substance abuse, both legal and illegal, on society, and its impact on particularly vulnerable sections. Stressing the need for a reevaluation, President Obama opined, "Locking somebody up for 20 years is probably not the best strategy, and that's something that we have to rethink as a society as a whole."

This seminal conversation not only shone a light on the President's nuanced approach towards drug offenses and the legal status of marijuana but also underscored the urgency for an informed, nationwide discussion about effective strategies to combat substance abuse.

Photo via Wikimedia Commons